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City of Vancouver's 2026 civic election turnout tops over 43%, highest in over a decade

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The City of Vancouver’s 2026 civic election attracted tens of thousands more voters than the previous election, with preliminary turnout climbing just over 43 per cent.

According to preliminary figures released by the City overnight, a total of 209,214 ballots were cast. That is up from the final count of 171,494 ballots in the 2022 civic election, when turnout was 36.3 per cent.

The overall increase amounts to 37,720 additional ballots or approximately 22 per cent more than the final tally four years ago.

Moreover, nearly 104,000 of those ballots were cast during four days of advance voting, with early voting opportunities significantly expanded from the City’s operation of 59 advance voting locations — up from 22 locations in the 2022 civic election’s advance voting. New single-day and overall records were made for advance voting in the 2026 civic election. The City also previously reported strong numbers for mail-in ballot requests.

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This year’s preliminary total ballot count also exceeds the totals recorded in each of Vancouver’s previous four general civic elections, stretching back to 2011.

The figures reverse two consecutive declines in civic election participation. After reaching 43.4 per cent in 2014, turnout fell to 39.4 per cent in 2018 and then to 36.3 per cent in 2022. Ballot totals also declined across those three elections.

One of the City’s highest turnouts ever was recorded in the 2002 civic election, when 50 per cent of registered voters participated. The subsequent turnouts were 32 per cent in the 2005 civic election and 31 per cent in the 2008 civic election, which was the lowest in the city’s history.

It should be noted that the City has so far described the 2026 civic election’s turnout rate only as “more than 43 per cent,” leaving it unclear whether the final percentage will exceed 2014’s 43.4 per cent.

Turnout percentages, however, also depend on the size of the registered electorate. The City of Vancouver had 415,978 registered voters for the 2014 civic election, compared with 472,665 in 2022. Since the early 2010s, Vancouver’s population has grown by well over 100,000 to about 735,000 people, while the share of residents who rent rather than own their homes has also increased.

The increased participation in this month’s civic election accompanied a major political shift. Green Party of Vancouver mayoral candidate Pete Fry defeated incumbent Ken Sim of the ABC Vancouver party, with Mike Klassen the only ABC city councillor re-elected. COPE and the Greens each secured four city councillor seats, while OneCity won one seat, giving the three left-wing/progressive parties 10 of City Council’s 11 seats when Fry’s mayoral seat is included.

Candidates from these three parties also swept every seat on the Vancouver Park Board and Vancouver School Board.

The turnout figures remain preliminary and are subject to change. Official election results, including the results of the separate public safety plebiscite, are expected on Wednesday, Oct. 21. The separate public safety plebiscite ballot form will be scanned and counted after election night.

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